Dear Mr. Shapiro and Mr. Witney,

Thank you very much for this very up-to-date and important study. I worked for 7 years in the Czech Republic´s state administration - MoD, MFA and at the Czech Permanent Representation in Brussels. The most of that time I dealt with different aspects of ESDP and I would like to share with you a little bit of my personal observations of the Czech security and defence policy and its approach to the US and the EU.  In general, the US (inside or outside of NATO) is usually seen as only reliable guarantor of our security and ESDP is found unimportant or even harmful to our transatlantic links. On the other side, it is followed by some kind of “Russophobia”.  The problem is more psychological and generation then one of foreign policy, given by the experience of the time before 1989. For many, the Cold War still continues, only the Iron Curtain moved eastwards to the Russian western border. Abolishment of the US plans to build the radar on our territory as a part of anti-ballistic missile system was seen as a disaster, which the comments in the Czech newspapers compared to the Munich Treaty of 1938. The radar was not seen in the Czech Republic as only a part of defence against ballistic missiles, launched by some “rough” states or terrorist groups, but first of all, as a symbol of American military presence in our country, which would protect us against eventual Russian aggression. For Russian positions in different international security forums the Czech Republic has usually the reaction of resolute disagreement. What ESDP concerns, there are only few people, who deal with it and pay some attention to it. The ESDP is very little priority on decision making level in Prague. Only think, which is all the time repeated, is the necessity of close NATO-EU cooperation. Generally, the Czech approach misses a real content. There was also trend in recent years, when the Czech Republic, Poland and the Baltic states sometimes just followed the British positions in different ESDP bodies as the positions of the most ‘Atlanticist’ power in the EU. Sometimes happened that the UK had bilateral talks with France or some other power and changed position just before the meeting and those following countries were left stranded. However, they did not learn the lesson and have still the same approach as before. The clear lesson is, that 20 years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, they need finally to mature and do not rely on some “big brother”. They should learn the same lesson from the abolishment of the US anti-ballistic missile plans. The small Czech Republic and medium size Poland should realize that they are not especially important strategic allies for the US. Such relation has even no historical background. Although the Czech Republic has had some important personal relationships and Poland has large diasporas in the US, there are still many more countries in Europe and rest of the world, who have either more historical and cultural links or/and higher strategic importance for the US then these two post-Communist countries. The best way forward is to find more pragmatic and more active approach towards the development of the ESDP and help it lead to common defence, as proposed in the Lisbon Treaty. It can provide these countries with another security anchor and make the EU more responsible partner for the US. They should also start domestic discussions on the topics as Russia or Afghanistan, but the pragmatic discussion, without “Russophobia” or without the motivation of catching the fancy of the US. Once they do this “homework”, they will be able to contribute more to the larger discussions within the CFSP/ESDP framework, which can bring higher quality to the EU external policy.

Best regards!

Marek Kubicek